Australia should press Israel not to invade Lebanon, says Greens leader
Adam Bandt, the leader of the Australian Greens, has called for the Australian government to pressure Israel not to invade Lebanon in the wake of the deadly attack on Majdal Shams.
“Labor must pressure the extremist Israeli government to end its genocide in Gaza and not escalate war by invading Lebanon,” Bandt said in a post on social media.
Labor must pressure the extremist Israeli government to end its genocide in Gaza and not escalate war by invading Lebanon.
Sanctions now.
— Adam Bandt (@AdamBandt) July 28, 2024
Fire breaks out in southern Lebanon village
Our colleagues at Al Jazeera Arabic are reporting that Israeli attacks have caused fires to break on the town of Khiam in southern Lebanon.
Other locations hit in the Israeli assault include:
- The port city of Tyre in southern Lebanon
- The town of Abbasiya, near Tyre
- Burj al-Shemali, a municipality near Tyre where a refugee camp for Palestinians is located
- A field between the towns of Chmistar and Taraiyya in the Bekaa Valley, Hezbollah’s stronghold in eastern Lebanon
The Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project (ACLED) said that fires are becoming increasingly common amid the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, with Israel using highly incendiary white phosphorus munitions as well as launching fireballs with catapults to deliberately burn vegetation.
اشتعال النيران في بلدة الخيام اللبنانية إثر الغارات الإسرائيلية #صورة pic.twitter.com/geAUR0tiJ9
— الجزيرة فلسطين (@AJA_Palestine) July 27, 2024
Death toll from Golan Heights attack rises to 12
The Israeli military says at least 12 people have been killed in the rocket attack on Majdal Shams. All the victims were aged between 10 and 20.
Earlier, the military also said that the rocket that struck the football pitch was an Iranian-made Falaq-1 and that a Hezbollah commander named Ali Muhammad Yahya had directed the attack from a launching site in Shebaa in southern Lebanon.
As we’ve been reporting, Hezbollah has denied responsibility for the attack, with Axios, a US news outlet, reporting that the armed group told the UN that the incident was the result of an Israeli anti-rocket interceptor hitting the football pitch.
Emergency personnel inspect an area in Majdal Shams after a rocket attack on the area on July 27
